The self-professed Oscars of the Internet, the Webby Awards, recently announced the 2007 website winners.
Just how does this beholder judge beauty?
The Webby Awards evaluates websites based on six characteristics that are both fundamental and unique to website design. In doing so, they have transformed the judging process from whim to science:
Content…Good content should be engaging, relevant, and appropriate for the audience…
Structure and Navigation…Sites with good structure and navigation are consistent, intuitive and transparent…
Visual Design…Good visual design is high quality, appropriate, and relevant for the audience and the message it is supporting…
Functionality…Good functionality makes the experience center stage and the technology invisible.
Interactivity…Good interactivity is more than a rollover or choosing what to click on next; it allows you, as a user, to give and receive. It insists that you participate, not spectate…
Overall Experience… includes the intangibles that make one stay or leave…
This list of website design criterion may be instructional if you are considering developing a new website for your professional services firm.
Gaining insight about the unique character of website design can help you to ensure that instead of simply launching an online brochure you will instead be positioned to launch a website that leverages the opportunities that the Internet presents.